Pa'foo Sleeps Over
by FeeBe
Summary: Lily and James have to go out overnight so Sirius stays to keep an eye on Harry. Trick or Treat Challenge- Blacks- 8- Sharing a bed.


It had been a week since the last time he had seen them. A week since the secret keeper switch. More accurately it had been just under a week since he had last been asked to baby sit. At the time he had been fairly sure that he wouldn't be asked again, at least for a while, but here he was.

Sirius pouted, fortunately there was no one about to see. Lily had been asked, by Dumbledore, to go to Hogwarts because they needed certain potions brewed and there was no one else available. They weren't thee sort of potions you could just buy at the apothecary. James, of course, would not let her go alone. Sirius was beginning to wonder if that was really it, or if he was just looking for any reason to get out of the house. Not that he could be blamed for that, they had been locked up for 4 months already. Tomorrow night was Halloween and for some unknown reason even thinking about it gave Sirius the shivers.

Still as Lily had assured him, this gig would be much easier. Lily would put Harry to bed before they left and they would be back in the morning before he woke up. Unless he got up for some reason in the night, but he had been sleeping through most nights for a while now.

Sirius raised his hand and knocked on the door, feeling a little silly as he did so. They were under fidelius after all with only a limited number of people knowing the secret.

"Sirius," Lily greeted him with a hug, Harry held in one arm.

"Lily flower and Harry pup, how are you," Sirius chucked Harry under the chin on his way through the door.

"He's all feed and we are just about to have a story before bed," Lily said.

James came down the stairs, "The little bug….."

Lily frowned at him disapprovingly.

"The little bug has been asking after you," James finally finished his sentence. Sirius grinned at him. Lily so had James wrapped around her little finger.

"Is that so." Sirius turned to look at the little boy, who was now sucking on his fingers and wiggling furiously in an attempt to get out of his Mother's grasp.

"Here, you take him," Lily sighed exasperatedly. "He won't settle until you've said hello. Perhaps we should have told you to wait until he was asleep."

Sirius held out his arms and Harry practical jumped across the intervening space, "It's a bit late now."

Harry looked up at Sirius and began talking rapidly, Sirius couldn't make out all the words, but he was proud to notice that Pa'foo was definitely prevalent. F'ying, and zoom also made an appearance.

"So you went flying did you?" Sirius glanced at James quickly for confirmation before returning his attention to the boy he held.

"Yup! Pa'foo f'y?" Harry asked.

"Not tonight," when Harry's lips turned down Sirius walked over to the window and opened the curtains. "See it's too dark out. You might get hurt."

"No hurt Pa'foo," Harry reassured and patted Sirius' cheek.

"Good now it's time for your story and bed."

"Pa'foo stor-ee?" Harry looked to his Mother.

"I don't know," she mused, "Is Padfoot up to it? After all the trouble he got into last time."

"Pa'foo No'ee." The adults looked at each other trying to figure out what he had meant, before the penny dropped.

"Harry, did you mean naughty? Padfoot was naughty?" Lily asked.

"Yup. No'ee Pa'foo." Harry tucked his head under Sirius' chin and stuck his fingers in his mouth.

"You're a tired teddy bear Pup, let's go read a story." Harry nodded not lifting his head from the warm chest.

"What are you reading?"

"Anything off the shelf," Lily said.

"There's some really weird muggle ones," James added.

"They are not weird, just different from what you're used to."

"Like I said weird!"

"Just go and do the washing up James! Or we'll never get away."

Sirius climbed the stairs ignoring the bickering couple.

"One story and then straight into bed and I'll send, Mummy and Daddy up to tuck you in, okay Pup?"

Harry nodded.

"Right," Sirius pushed open the door, grabbed the first book he found off the shelf and sat in the rocking chair. Getting a slow rock going he began to read.

"Once upon a time in a cabin in a forest there lived three bears."

"fur-ee bers," Harry repeated.

"Hmm, th-r-ee, three bears," Sirius enunciated.

"Fur-ee bers," Harry tried again, with no audible difference.

"Close enough cub. Continuing on. There was a Mumma bear, a Papa bear and a little wee baby bear…."

Sirius continued the story until the little boy in his lap was fast asleep. He gentle picked the boy up, transferred him to his cot and headed back down the stairs.

"Success?" James raised his eyebrows as Sirius entered the room.

"Did you doubt me?"

"Well it wasn't that long ago you spent the entire night in the rocking chair, because you couldn't get him down."

"I'm not fussed on that story Prongs," Sirius stated.

"Why? Which one did you read?" James asked.

"Goldilocks," Sirius stated.

"Little girl goes wandering in the woods. What's so bad about that?"

"What is it teaching them?" Sirius asked before answering himself. "She broke into the bears home, broke their chair, ate their breakfast and messed up their beds, then jumped out a window. And I bet i the bears had complained no one would have listened. It's just not right!"

"So you are concerned about the bears rights then?" Lily asked as she walked up behind them. "Are you ready?" She turned to James who nodded. "Now it should be easy, I've set up the spare room for you. I checked in on him and he is all settled and asleep. So he shouldn't wake up until morning. Thanks for doing this Sirius. It's kind of a relief to be able to get out of the house every now and then."

"Any time Lily flower."

Sirius walked them to the door and waved them off, before making his way back to the kitchen to make a cup of tea.

Three hours later Sirius was in bed asleep. He was sleeping so deeply he didn't notice the thump from the next room, or the creak of the nursery door opening. He didn't hear the little footsteps padding up the hall or hear the door to his room being opened. In fact the first thing he knew was there was a weight with bony knees bouncing on his chest calling out, "Pa'foo! Pa'foo!"

"Wha!" Sirius startled awake. "Argh!" A knee caught him just below the sternum. "Pup!" What are you doing?'

"No Mumma, No Dada! Pa'foo!" the boy cried.

"They've gone out Pup. I'm here to look after you."

"Pa'foo 'ere." Thankfully the boy stilled.

"Yeah, Padfoot's here."

Harry rolled off Sirius' chest onto the bed. "Pa'foo p'ay?"

"No pup not playtime, sleep time."

"No! P'ay."

"Come here," Sirius reached out and snagged the boy pulling him down to lie at his side. How on earth was he going to get him back to sleep, there was no way he was going to sleep ion that wretched chair again. What was it muggles did? Counting sheep. That was it. Why the sheep though? Surely counting would be enough.

"Oh Harry, let's play a game,"

"P'ay?" Harry started to sit up.

"Yes. You have to be lying down first." Harry lay down. "Now you copy everything I say. Okay?"

"O'tay," Harry nodded happily.

"One. Now it's your go," Sirius gently tickled the boys ribs.

With a little giggle Harry said, "W…w….w-u-n"

"That's pretty good pup, try again. One."

"W-un."

"Good try now two." Harry looked at Sirius doubtfully and received another tickle. "Go on try."

"T-ooooo,"

"Good boy. Two. This one is harder. Three."

"Fur-eeee!" sang the boy.

"Nearly. Th…r…ee. Three," Sirius corrected.

"Furee, furee."

"Try again, th…r…ee, three," Sirius encouraged.

"Fu-ree, free," Harry lisped.

"Better. Now next comes four."

"F-or-a," Harry tried, frowning.

"F-our, four."

"For-a."

"Close Pup very close. Now five."

"Fffffffff-i-va."

"That's pretty good. Now this one is tricky. S-i-x, six."

"xxxxxxxsssssss." Sirius lifted his head and turned to look at the boy.

"Try again Harry, it's tricky. S-i-x, six."

"sssssssxxxxxxx," Harry hissed.

There wasn't much room for doubt, that was a hiss, but did it have any meaning. He made a note to let James know and to maybe, maybe test out whether or not the little boy could speak parseltongue or not.

"Right let's try from the top. One."

"Wun."

"Two."

"To-a."

"Three."

"Free," Harry yawned. Huh, who would have guessed it was working.

"Four,"

"For-a."

"Five."

There was a little snuffle from beside him. Sirius was just congratulating himself on a job well done, when he went to rolled onto his side. Except there was a little body just there. What if he rolled onto Harry in his sleep and crushed him? Or the pillows moved and covered his face and suffocated him? The pillows got thrown on to the floor, and Sirius lay as straight as a board staring at the ceiling.

Sirius did manage to fall asleep. However he was woken again this time due to a babbling.

"Harry?" he looked at the boy. Harry's eyes were closed.

"Baba dada me no for a xxxsss," Harry said eyes still shut.

"Oh! Sleep talking. Right." Sirius took a deep breath and tried to settle again, just as he was about to drift off, he realised something. Harry was now lying with his body crosswise on the bed! Ok! That was normal right?

Sirius took some deep relaxing breaths and tried to order his mind, he drifted off to sleep slowly.

An hour later, Sirius snuffled, then his nose itched. He rubbed it sleepy as he woke, only to find that there was something on his face. He careful changed the course of his hands movement and felt the object that was lying on his face covering his top lip. A short investigation later and he discovered it was Harry's foot, he froze. If this was Harry's foot, where was the rest of Harry, ok so he was now lying with one foot on Sirius' face the other was that painful object that was inserted just under his ribs and his head was sticking out to the side, but fortunately on the mattress.

Sirius carefully repositioned the boy. Harry did not wake. He was breathing. Sirius checked! Sirius again settled himself and began to doze.

Half an hour later.

Smack.

"What the actual F…." Sirius startled. There was no further movement from the boy, so Sirius gently guided the hand down to the boys side.

When Sirius woke for the last time that night it was to find Harry curled up on his lap. He wrapped an arm around the little body and tried to find that lovely calm place that led to sleep again. Just for a little bit.

The door to the room opened and Lily stuck her head in. Sirius just pretended to be asleep.

"James, come and look," Lily whispered. James joined her at the door. Sirius resolutely kept his eyes shut. "Aren't they cute."

Sirius could feel that James was grinning, the cheeky b….. "Let me just get the camera!"

What! Sirius had the urge to jump out of bed and chase James the way he used to in the common room, but the weight on his chest reminded him that there were other things to think about. Harry hadn't had a full night's sleep so it was best to let him sleep as long as possible. In the end Sirius just kept his eyes closed.


End file.
